Stick a fork in Michael Chandler; he’s done.
‘Iron’ suffered his fifth career loss inside the Octagon at UFC 314, succumbing to a third-round beatdown served on a silver platter by surging Liverpudlian fan favorite Paddy Pimblett. Going into the fight, there were a lot of questions surrounding Pimblett’s development and whether he’d be able to weather the type of storm that Chandler delivers every time he steps inside the cage.
Needless to say, ‘The Baddy’ passed with flying colors, delivering his most dominant performance yet and leaving Miami with a huge statement-making victory against the former Bellator champion.
‘The Count’ believes Michael Chandler is too old to climb the contender’s ladder again
Now 38 years old and sitting on a 2-5 record under the UFC banner, Chandler’s career is essentially over. At least, that’s what former middleweight titleholder Michael Bisping thinks.
“I don’t say this lightly, but that was a career-killing performance for Michael Chandler,” Bisping, said on his YouTube channel. “Yes, of course, he’ll fight again. Yes, he’ll still make money. Yes, people will want to tune in. But that’s it. There ain’t no more title talks, there is no more, ’See you at the top.’ There’s none of that.
“Paddy Pimblett just put an end to all of that. If he was 30 years old, he could have another go. He could dust himself off and have another crack at the whip. But no, Father Time is undefeated. He’s 38 years old, and there ain’t no way that he’s getting back into title contention ever again.”
Despite another devastating loss on his resume, Dana White remains high on Michael Chandler, leading many to believe that ‘Iron’ is far from done competing.
But whatever comes next for Chandler, the Missouri native is comfortable knowing that whether he wins or loses inside the Octagon, he’s already won at life.
“Never out of the fight,” Chandler wrote on X. “This picture sums it all up. As long as I’ve got these heartbeats and hands to hold, I’ve already won.”
